Dragon Trouble
by ElfenbeinDaemon
Summary: The world of To-Love-ru just gained a Dragon, one in the form of a young boy, to be exact. With a little more fire and a pair of wings, this take on the TO-Love-ru story is yet to be determined. Breath of Fire has stirred the heat of the story!Please R
1. Chapter 1  The Beginning

Sorry about this, I just had to repost this story because I forgot to mention that I own absolutely nothing here, neither the anime, nor the manga. Or anything other than my own ideas. Much thanks to Drake202 who asked me to write this. This edition is a little better worded, and I changed a few small things. This Edition will continue. Much thanks, ~Cyrus

* * *

Chapter 1 - Where it all began

Nothing could be worse than Rito's position. He was desperately in love with the wonderfully cute Haruna Sairenji, and too timid to actually do anything about it. It wasn't like he hadn't tried. In fact, he had attempted many times to confess to her about his very strong feelings for her. However, each and every time that he did muster the courage to confess, something or someone or some freak accident managed to get in the way of his plans. Friends, family, and even an escaped herd of elephants had managed to come between him and Haruna. But not today! Today, he told himself, I will go up to her after school and finally confess.

With a silent fist pump, Rito turned to peer around the corner of the school hallway down which the object of his affection had just turned. _Haruna-chan just looks so cute every time I see her..._ _Her silky black hair, her sweet expression, even her gentle manner... She is simply the best... _Rito thought to himself, eyes glazing over a little. A smile crept across his face, completing the glazed expression.

"Yo, Rito! Are you stalking her in the middle of the day again?"

After quickly climbing back into his skin, Rito turned around to scream at his good friend Kenichi Saruyama who had just managed to scare him out of it. "Who's the stalker here?"

"What, you mean you aren't? You were looking at your beloved Haruna-chan as usual, Right?"

Growling, Rito mussed with brown hair before crossing his arms and looking pointedly down his nose at Kenichi. "Sh-shut up. I wasn't just 'looking' today. I was waiting for good timing."

"Timing?" Saruyama raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah. I've decided." Rito took a deep breath and clenched his fists with determination. "Today is the day I will confess my love to her!"

"Right. You've said this every day now for two years. Come on Rito, we're gonna be late for class." With a sight, Rito shook his head and followed Saruyama down the hallway into his classroom. _Finally, this year I'm in the same class as Haruna-chan in high school. The last time that happened was back in 8__th__ grade, so I'm really happy. But... I can't afford to be satisfied with that happiness. I will tell her. I will do it today. After school should be a good time I think. I'll tell her my passionate feelings!_

Nothing would stop him today. Not even elephants. In fact, it would be something completely different. Something not quite of this world.

* * *

In another world, another time, another dimension, a young man was lying amidst the carnage of uncontrolled fury. Nothing was left in this desolate world, nothing but darkness, and a small area of dim light in which he and five figures lay motionless in the sand. Wind blasted the small granules around the area, catching the light blue hair of the man out of its messy ponytail.

A groan came from the man, who was slowly getting to his knees. "Hey, guys... we did it... We finally did it! We won... We finally won against Myria. When we get home, we'll... Guys?" Nothing answered him. No motion, no sound, no nothing. Forcing his eyes open against the flying grit, the man stumbled to his feet and dragged himself to the still form of what seemed to be one of his companions.

"H-hey, guys? You there?" A tentative tap on the shoulder did nothing to the motionless, charred form. "Garr? Peco? Rei? Momo? Nina?" The questioning cry of the lost companions' names increased in volume as the despairing truth of what had happened set in. The power of the Divine Kaiser Dragon was terrible indeed. Not even after years of training and experience could it be controlled by one of the brood. The power to kill a god was formidable indeed. "No... No...! NOOOOOOOOOO!" The cry tore at the fabric of a dying world, ravished by the uncontrolled power of a brood member.

Nothing was worth anything anymore. All his struggles, all his travels, everything he had worked so hard for was brought to nothing in the aftermath of his final battle. Now his world was torn, his friends were gone, destroyed in an instant by the power of a dragon that should never have been released, and all he had to show for it was a broken, separate world. He couldn't even go back to his own, caught in this place inbetween the world of men and the world of the gods.

But wait. Tears glinted in the dim light as he scrabbled for the sheath across his back. A blade, polished and smooth, sharper than anything, slithered silently out of its sheath. He grinned painfully through the tears at the blade. "You're quiet today. That's so unusual. You're usually so hard to shut up. Well, I guess you're gone too, eh?" Slowly grasping the hilt, he braced the point of the blade against the center of his chest. "I'm sorry guys... I guess... This is goodbye..."

**SAVING THE WORLD ALWAYS HAS A TERRIBLE PRICE. TO STOP THE GODDESS OF DESIRE, MYRIA, YOU USED THE ULTIMATE POWER. **The shadow of something gigantic blocked out a part of the dim circle. **PUT DOWN THAT THING, IT'S NOT GOING TO HELP YOU IN ANY CASE. YOU DID WHAT YOU HAD TO. THE WORLD IS SAVED.**

"Wha-" the blade was torn from his grasp by an unseen force, spinning up into darkness before burying its point in the sand a meter away from him. The young man turned around, startled to see anyone else in this desolate place. The shadow was monstrous, gigantic wings and seven tails and three crowned and horned heads spreading across the sand. However, the figure that was attached to it was that of a demure male. Silver hair hung straight down from his head to the nape of his neck, framing a face with sharp features and eyes that held gold and silver flecked pupils. A circlet of obsidian crossed his forehead, matching the elegant, crisp black suit that hung on his scarecrow-like frame. Tall and wiry, the man had a commanding air about him that would not allow the slightest disobedience.

**HELLO, RYU. I AM LADON. THE KING OF DRAGONS, THE GOD OF THE BROOD. ****YOU HAVE DONE WELL. **Ladon stepped forward towards Ryu, and with every step he took there came an invisible tremor, enough to make the ground tremble in the slightest amount. **YOU HAVE LOST EVERYTHING, AND HAVE NO PLACE TO RETURN TO. YOU DID THIS, TO SAVE THE HOME AND COMPANIONS YOU LOVE. I AM HERE TO REPAY YOU FOR SAVING THE BROOD, THE WORLD, AND A RACE THAT MAY HAVE COME TO AN END. YOU WILL NOT REMEMBER MUCH, BUT IT WILL HELP WHITTLE AWAY THE PAIN THAT YOU MUST ENDURE. I GIVE YOU A NEW LIFE, A NEW HOME, AND NEW HAPPINESS IN TIME. FROM HAVING LOST EVERYTHING, TO A PLACE WHERE YOU MAY RISE TO THE ABSOLUTE TOP OF EVERYTHING. FROM BROKEN HERO TO KING OF THE UNIVERSE. **

Ryu's eyes went blank as he crumpled to his knees. The Dragon King stood in front of him, then pulled a pearly white hand out of his pocket. Gently, he placed it on Ryu's forehead. **YOU HAVE DONE WELL, RYU. **And with that, Ryu fell into a blissful darkness.

* * *

The day was over at long last. Students were streaming out of the main building, across the wide grounds, past the few trees and bushes, and out the main gates. Rito Yuuki stood against the flow of students out of the gates, waiting for his chance to finally confess to Sairenji. Glancing around the schoolyard, he clenched his fists in determination. _Okay! Today, I will do it! I'll tell Haruna-chan that I... that I... that I lo-... l.. l... l-love her!_ Looking around again, he noticed the object of his affections leaving the building and walking towards the gate behind him. Messing nervously with his hair, Rito decided that a pep talk to himself was in order. "Okay Rito! Today's the day! I'll do it! Here she comes, so go!"

"Sairenji-san!" _I'll say it! I'll say it! Ever since I fist saw you, I've always... I've al-always l-lo.. l.. l-l... lo... "_L_-_LOVED YOU!"

Haruna stopped walking and looked up from her book. "Heh? Was it just me or did someone call out to me just now?" Seeing nothing, she shrugged and put it to her imagination before continuing on her way home.

Oddly enough, there was steam rising from a nearby bush. Standing up from his hiding spot, Rito's face was cherry-red. _I can't say it after all I guess. Another opportunity ruined. _With a drawn-out sigh, he walked off the school grounds and made his way home.

"I'm home..." Rito slumped into the Yukki family home. It was small, but not cramped, and a very comfortable house. "Welcome back, Rito." Mikan, his little sister, called from the living room couch where she was watching TV. About a head shorter than Rito, she was mature, responsible, and had black hair that hung down past her shoulders. "Daddy said that he'll be home late again."

"Whatever..." Rito dragged himself up to his room, then flopped on the bed. Lying there for a few minutes, he thought about the confession failure of the day. _Ugh... I'm so lame I could cry... _A loud buzzing interrupted Rito's thoughts. He dug into his pocket and pulled out his phone to see that Saruyama was calling him.

"Gyahahahaha! I don't even have to ask! I see, you failed as I had expected!" The loud cackle of his friend made a tickmark appear on Rito's forehead.

"Bastard, don't say that you were expecting it!"

"Ha ha, but it is your usual pattern. You're aggressive when it comes to sports and things, but when it comes to love, you're really pathetic, Rito! Not to mention that you're so naïve that you'd faint from seeing pictures of a girl in a bathing suit!"

"H-hey! That was a long time ago!" Rito growled at the phone. _Damn bastard still remembers that incident... _"I'm not like that anymore"

He could almost see the grin on Saruyama's face. "Then try imagining Haruna-chan in a swimsuit..."

"Heh?" He could see her now, black hair dripping a little from the sea, smooth skin on a supple body, the wonders of youth hidden only by a pair of thin garments... "Wha-" It was simply too much for Rito. His face turned beet red and steam shot out of his ears. "Wai- IDIOT! WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE SAYING!"

"Gyahahahaha! See, you haven't changed a bit! You need to be more immune to females, Rito. Then you can think about confessing again. Well, I gotta go. Catch ya later." With a click, he was gone. Rito growled at the phone and threw it to a corner of his room.

"Stupid Saruyama. What does he know..." After growling and muttering for a few minutes, Rito collected some clothes and a towel, then headed to the bathroom. "Mikan, I'm running a bath! Don't come in here!" Not waiting for the "Okay" he knew that he'd hear coming from downstairs, Rito shut the door and allowed himself to relax into the bath.

"That bastard... Can't keep his mouth shut. It's not like he has a girlfriend. But, some of what he said was true... Nevermind making friends with girls, I don't even remember a single conversation that I've had with a girl other than Mikan..." _Come to think of it, I don't think I ever had one. Soccer, dodgeball, basically everything in my life has been about having fun, at least until I met Haruna..._ At her name, the image of her in a bikini wandered its way back into his mind. "Gah!" He dunked his head under the water to block out the vision. "No, no! Forget it!" Coming up again, he sighed and looked up at the ceiling in melancholy. "...Immune to females... huh... I wonder what I should do..."

Rito was too busy lost in his own thoughts to notice the bubbles that had been rapidly growing in speed and intensity between his feet in the bathtub. He did notice once they began to glow as well. "Hmm?" A bright crackle of energy danced out of the water towards the ceiling. "W-wait a minute... WHAT THE-!" Rito's cry was cut off by a massive explosion of water. It took less than ten seconds, but plumes of water cascaded out from the bathtub, splashing the walls and ceiling and leaving a thick mist in the air. "Wh-what the-! D-did the bathtub just blow..." The mist cleared, revealing something that would change Rito's life forever. "...up?"

"Mmmmm... Perfect escape!" The words came in a slightly high pitched tone, and from about five feet above the ground. The mist parted around her, revealing more and more of what was obviously a girl, pink hair streaming down her back and flowing lightly in an invisible billow of wind to end just below her knees. Dripping wet, water sparkling off of a body that should have been hidden in the pages of the most expensive model magazines. Needless to say, Rito was frozen in a strange mixture of shock and amazement, with a little awe mixed in. The new arrival decided then was the moment to notice Rito. "Hm?"

The small noise was enough to snap Rito out of his daze. _There's a g-girl... in the bathroom... th-there's a g-girl... i-in the.. in the... _"Gyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!"

"Wh-what's wrong, Rito!" Mikan sprinted to the upstairs hallway at the sound of her brothers drawn out, and somewhat girly, scream. Rito himself was halfway out of the bathroom, dragging himself along the ground and shaking like a leaf.

"Th-there's a n-n-na... n-naked girl in the bathroom..." he trailed off, muttering to himself. Mikan, on the other hand, simply looked blankly at her brother.

"Huh? Where?"

"O-over there...!"

Mikan raised an eyebrow, looking critically into the bathroom. "Wheeeeere?"

"I said in the bathtub!" Rito was sounding a little desperate now.

"I don't see anything..."

"Eh? E-ehh? That's weird. I'm sure she was... right... eh?" steam seemed to be rising off the top of Rito's head. Mikan simply pulled out a rather amused smirk.

"Rito... I know you're in that phase. But you should at least be able to tell between phantasy and reality... Or I'll be embarrassed as your little sister." She pulled a towel out of the closet, then threw it at Rito. "Now clean this up, will you?" With that, she walked off down the hall, quietly laughing to herself.

It took Rito a few minutes to clean up, but soon enough he was wandering back up the stairs and towards his room. "Umm... Strange... I'm sure I saw her. If it was just my imagination..." he sighed and took a break from musing to open the door to his room. "Then I've really lost my marbles, right? But... I can't think of anything else..."

"Ah! I'm borrowing your towel!" A cheery, simple statement brought Rito out of his musings. There, on his bed, in his towel, no less, was this same strange girl that had appeared in his bathroom. Sitting on his bed as if it were the most natural thing in the world, cheerfully humming to herself and dressed in nothing but a towel.

"Wh-wha-wha-wha?" Backpedaling furiously, Rito dropped the towel he was holding and slammed into the wall, covering his eyes in the process. This did nothing to hide the massive blush that made his face glow red. "Wh-what are you!" He sat in the corner, breathing heavily, and peeking at the girl through his fingers.

Her only reaction was to smile at him. "Me? I'm Lala."

He slowly stood up, bracing himself against the wall. "L-Lala?"

"Yup!" A somehow impossibly happy smile followed his question. "I came from the planet Deviluke!"

"Y-you mean that you're an alien!" Rito could barely believe what he was hearing._ Alien? That's just too nuts to be true..._

"Well, I guess you can say that, from an Earthling's point of view." Rito simply stared at her, disbelief scrawled across his face in what could have practically been sharpie. Lala seemed completely unfazed by his reaction. "My, my. You don't believe me? Lookie, lookie. see for yourself!"

She turned around quickly and pulled up her towel, revealing herself to Rito. "Say... You Earthlings don't have tails, do you? Like this one." It was true. Holding up the towel and swishing back and forth was a long, black towel with a spade-shaped tip. _S-so that's what a... a girl looks like..._ Needless to say, Rito was wide-eyed and fried in the cranial department. Smoke fizzed out through his hair. "Ah! I might have a tail, but it's not like I'll morph by looking at a full moon."

"I-I get it!" Rito shook his head in amazement, waving away the last few wisps of steam. "I get it! So cover yourself up already! Right now!" Blushing madly, he turned away, trying to save some of his dignity. Lala simply smiled at him and looked a little confused.

"Why're you blushing? How sweet..." Rito continued to shake his head in bewilderment. _This is completely nuts... _

"If... If you're really an alien, how did you suddenly appear and disappear from the bathroom?" Resting against the wall, Rito looked over at the alien standing next to his bed.

"Ah! That's because..." Lala held up her left wrist, "I used this!" She pointed to a small metallic bracelet, which seemed to be in the shape of some sort of rabbit, albeit with glowing red eyes. "Tada! My own invention 'Pyon-pyon Warp-kun'! It may not be able to specify the destination, but it makes it possible to warp living units short distances!" Lala stood there, smiling happily and swishing her tail back and forth rapidly, almost like a dog wagging its tail. Rito sweatdropped.

"Wa-warp?"

"Yup. I used it in the spaceship bathroom and somehow ended up in yours."

"From a spaceship? Why would you...?"

For the first time, Lala looked somewhat unhappy, looking down pensively. After a second, she began to speak slowly. "I'm on the run... see?" Rito snapped to attention, looking at her properly for the first time. It was true, she seemed to be somewhat nervous, and he could see the traces of stress and fear in her eyes. " I thought I'd be safe on Earth, but my pursuers arrived here too... They were about to take me away in their spaceship... If I hadn't used this ring I'd probably be..." She trailed off into silence.

_Pursuers...? W-wait a minute... HUH? Th-this is too much for me... Way too much!_ "Wh-what ever! Just get outta here asap," Rito wheezed, blushing again. Unfortunately for him, his voice was drowned out by another, electronic one.

"Lala-sama-!" In through his suddenly opened window flew the strangest looking being Rito had ever seen. It was short, maybe a foot tall, and looked like a very short humanoid figure with no legs. Two feet dangled out of a stout body and arms as wide as its torso extended from its sides. On its back were two bat wings, albeit one spine was curled into a spiral. Its head was a round white ball with inverted spirals as eyes. "Are you all right, Lala-sama?"

"Woah! What's that thing?" Rito's eyes grew huge again as he gaped at the new visitor.

"Peke!" Lala cried out, embracing the newcomer. "Thank goodness! Peke, you managed to escape safe and sound too!"

"Yes! Luckily the ship hadn't left the atmosphere!" Thing turned its head slightly, noticing Rito for the first time. "Lala-sama, who's that dense-looking earthling?"

_Dense-looking?_

"He lives here. And that reminds me," Lala glanced up at Rito again, "You haven't told me your name."

"Oh, me?" Rito ruffled his hair nervously. "It's... Rito."

"Hmmm... This here is Peke." Lala lifted the robot in her arms. "He's a 'Multi-purpose costume robot' that I invented."

"Costume robot?" Rito asked quietly, but was muffled by Lala's towel flying at him and off of her. "Wai-! Why did you take off your towel?" He flung his arms in front of him, blocking his view of the now clothes-less Lala.

"I leave it to you, Peke!" Lala smiled at the robot, flicking her tail around behind her.

"Roger!" came Peke's electronic reply. "CHANGE! Dress form!" An extremely bright flash of light later, and then...

"Tadah!" Lala's triumphant shout revealed her to be dressed in a strange outfit, which mirrored the outfit of the robot that had disappeared moments before. The only difference was the addition of a set of leggings and two frills that hung down her legs from her waist to make a dress-like appearance. Rito could only stand in awe of what had happened.

"Is it too tight, Lala-sama?" the electronic voice came from the clothes themselves, revealing the location of the disappeared robot.

"Hmm, it's perfect. I'm so glad you came here quickly, Peke! If you weren't around, I wouldn't have any clothes to wear!" After inspecting herself properly, Lala turned to Rito and smiled at him. "Well? Don't I look great Rito?"

"Eh?" Rito stood silently, looking at her. _Wh-what an embarrassing getup..._ "Um, yeah."

"Lala-sama, what do you plan on doing now?" Peke piped up. Lala grinned and winked at Rito.

"Let's just say... I have an idea." Lala's statement was met with a sudden gust of wind through the open window, blowing the curtains aside with quite a lot of force. By the time the curtains were back in place, two formidable-looking men stood in the room, one on either side of Lala. Two matching tails were hovering in the air, ending in a sharp triangle as opposed to Lala's softer spade-shaped tail. Both wore black suits and sunglasses, and one had a scar running across his left eye.

"...What a bother. I should've tied you up so that you couldn't roam so freely..." the scarred man said in a low rumble. Lala looked nervously at them before slowly closing her eyes in frustration.

"Peke..."

"Y-yes!" the costume robot chirped nervously.

"Didn't I tell you again and again to watch out if you're being followed?" A tick mark throbbed on Lala's forehead.

"...Yes," Peke whined piteously.

"Sheesh, you witless robot! Now everything's gone down the drain!"

"I-I'm sorry..." Rito sweatdropped at the sheepish apology of the robot. _So... So they're the ones who're after her. What a burly-looking bunch... _

The two men dressed in suits waited for Lala to finish her rant, then nodded at each other. "Well. Are you prepared now?"

"La-Lala-sama, why not use you ring again?" Peke stuttered, trying to make up for having been followed. Lala shook her head.

"I can't... Each time it is used, it requires a whole day to recharge its energy, so- Hey!" The man with the scar interrupted her and grabbed her arm.

"That's enough. Let's get going!"

"No... Let go!" Lala twisted and turned, trying to release herself from her captor. "I said no! Let go of me!" The dark haired man moved to help his companion, pushing Lala into the grip of the scarred man. Rito watched in quiet disbelief from his corner. _...Okay, what's going on here? I don't get this at all. Why is something this serious going on right here in my room?... And couldn't they at least apologize for trampling my carpet?_

Mikan took a moment to stop reading and glare at the ceiling as another heavy tremor ran through the house. "Really, what the heck is Rito doing...? Making all that noise."

Back upstairs, the fight between Lala and the two men had gotten a little desperate, with Lala biting and scratching the two men. Rito had had enough of that. _Damn it. I can't just stand here! _Rito

grinned for a moment, then picked up the soccer ball in his room. A second later it slammed into the arm of the man holding Lala, then ricocheted into the face of the other man. After landing from the kick to the ball, Rito rushed past the momentarily stunned men and grabbed Lala's hand.

"This way!" He slammed open the window and dragged Lala out onto the rooftop. She, who had previously had so much spirit, seemed totally stunned at his action, replying to the pull only with a nervous "Rito?"

"Hey you! Hold it!" The two men had obviously recovered, and shouted after the fleeing figures. A second later, both had jumped out the window after them.

Rito was sprinting, putting his all into the athleticism that had ruled his life for so long, dashing across the rooftops of the houses in his neighborhood. Lala was keeping up right behind him, looking with curious wonder at the boy who had just risked everything to save her. "Rito... Why did you-?"

"I have no idea!" he growled angrily, panting from exertion. "But in a situation where a girl is being harassed right before my eyes, you can't just expect me to stand by and watch quietly!" Lala looked completely stunned. No other person had ever done anything like this for her. Yet this one, unlikely looking boy who she had known for only a matter of minutes had jumped into harm's way to help her. A small smile brushed away the worried look that had been on her face since the men had appeared.

In the street below, Haruna Sairenji was taking an innocent walk with her dog. Glancing up, she saw two figures leaping from rooftop to rooftop towards the nearby park. _Is that... a thief...? No, wait... _Staring in wonder, Haruna recognized the male sprinting along the roofs just before he jumped down into the park and out of her field of vision. "Yu-Yukki-kun..?" _Weird. I'll have to ask him about that tomorrow I guess..._

"HYAAAAH!" Behind Rito and Lala, a small truck flew into the air, propelled by the dark-haired man who had been following them. With a mighty heave, the truck was sent flying ahead of Rito, forcing him to stop his sprint off the rooftops and into the park. _What amazing strength... _Rito marveled at the truck for just a second before realizing something rather important. _Crap! They blocked all the exits!_

"Stay out of this, Earthling!" the two men approached Rito and Lala from the only open path. Rito spun around, gritting his teeth. He settled into a low stance, relaxing into the pose taught to him in his martial arts class so many years ago. Never before had he wished that he had kept taking that class more than now.

"Ho-hold it right there!" Rito shouted, getting desperate. "Or I'll spit on you!" Amazingly enough, both the men stood at a distance. Scar-man stepped out towards them.

"...Lala-sama. I beg you to stop trying..." He paused momentarily. "To run away from home!"

"No way!" Lala shouted back without hesitation.

Rito grinned at the man. "You heard her, she doesn't want to!" It took a moment for the words to register in his brain. "W-wait... Say what again? Run away from home?"

"I've had it!" Lala continued, "I don't care about being an heir, but I'm so sick of meeting suitors everyday!" Rito's jaw hit the floor. _Ran away from home...?_

"But, Lala-sama... This is your father's will."

"This has nothing to do with Papa!" Lala grabbed something that looked like a cell phone from her pocket and flipped it open. "Discharge, Go-go-vacuum-kun!" A giant-headed, metallic octopus shot out of the device, spinning into the air and floating there.

"Shoot! Another one of Lala-sama's inventions!" the men cried out, actually looking afraid of the strange, gigantic octopus.

"Wh-what the heck is that thing?" Rito yelled, trying to scramble up from the ground. Lala smiled proudly at him.

"This is Go-go-vacuum-kun! He sucks up everything, and stores it in an alternate dimension!" She grinned, then pouted at the men in suits. "Now, suck 'em up!" The eyes of the floating machine activated and began to glow an ominous red. A moth at the front opened up, revealing a bright white light inside the machine. The air began to swirl in an incredibly large spiral, gaining speed and power as it went along. The two men were plucked off their feet, spun into the air, and then disappeared into the machine's stomach, wailing in surprisingly girly fashion as they were dispatched.

"Wow!" Rito marveled at the floating thing. "C-cool! That's a vacuum cleaner? … Wait..." The trees were beginning to lose branches to the incredible power of the vacuum, benches and trash cans and all sorts of things were being sucked into the vortex. Then he himself began to be dragged along the ground, speeding up until he was caught in the spiral or debris. "Heeeeeeeeeeeeeeey~~! Its getting stronger and stronger! Stop it alrea-!" Rito's cry was cut off by his entrance into the machine.

"W-What should we do, Lala-sama?" Peke asked, taking in the damage that was being done to the park.

"Er... Uh..." Lala looked puzzled "I guess we should stop it?" Bright lights began to flash around the octopus, along with crackling strands of energy. Rito's legs kicked furiously from the mouth of the vacuum, struggling to free himself as the metal of the machine bulged and buckled, crashing furiously together.

"What the-?" Rito's scream passed through the air a second before the explosion blasted through the area. Once the octopus had self-destructed, it had ejected everything it had taken in, scattering things all over the park. Rito himself was caught on a tree branch, hanging by his shirt. From the back of his head, blue hair flowed down past his shoulders, marking a change in the boy.

Lala hovered near him, apologizing profusely as he faded in and out of consciousness. The last thing he could remember was that she had smiled thankfully at him, and had said "But thank you, Rito. I was so happy when you defended me." He had smiled, he thought, and then he was out.

* * *

Morning came. The alarm next to Rito's bed bleeped angrily at him, telling him to get up and ready for the new day. "Wazzat... No... I'm not getting up yet..." Rito mumbled sleepily, bringing a hand up to slap the sleep button on his alarm. "Lemme sleep..." His hand came down, crushing the unfortunate clock to scrap metal. The crunch it had made did bring him out of his morning stupor, which made its death not entirely in vain.

"What the..." Rito looked at the broken clock in amazement, then at his hand, then back to the remains. "I couldn't do that yesterday..." Deciding to ignore it for the moment, he proceeded to dress himself and get ready for school. Mikan had left before he had woken up, and had left him some toast on the table. After he had finished with his morning routine, Rito walked out the door, grabbing the food on the way. It was bright and sunny outside, which rather contrasted his current mood.

"Dammit... Yesterday was hell..." Left turn onto the street. "...Bloody wench... If I had known she had something like that, I wouldn't have gotten involved at all... But then again, if she had used that octopus thing in my room, the results would not have been good at all..." Right turn onto the next street. "Whatever. I'm not getting myself involved again. That runaway alien..." Rito glanced up from his musings at a sound that he was not used to hearing.

"...Morning, Yukki-kun." Haruna Sairenji, dressed in the crisp uniform for school, had just said good morning to him. _Ha-Haruna-chan? WHAAAAAAAAAAAAT! Haruna-chan just talked to me! This must be a dream... It's been so long... _

"Mor-morning, S-Sairenji-san!" Rito choked out, panicking. _H-hang on, this is no time to be loafing around. Now's... my chance! _

"Yesterday, I..." Haruna's attempt to question Rito about the night before was interrupted by Rito himself.

"Excuse me!"

"Huh?"

"I..." _C'mon, its now or never! You can do this Rito! _Rito's face was burning red, fists clenched tightly. "I-I... I..."

Haruna looked up at the sudden shadow that appeared above her. Rito scrunched his eyes shut, and bowed low in front of her. "Ever since I first set my eyes on you...! I've been in love with you! So... Please go out with me!" Rito panted with exertion, staying bowed. _I said it! I said it! _Slowly, he dared to raise his head to look at the answer he was going to get. _I said...!_ Pink hair, down to the knees of the person in front of him. A strange dress-like garment on a body that belonged in a magazine. The person in front of him was no longer Haruna Sairenji. It was Lala, the same who he had met last night. And she had the biggest grin he had ever seen on her face. That and a slight blush.

"R-Really, Rito? I'm so happy! I feel exactly the same way! So let's get married Rito!" Lala jumped forward and hugged Rito, purest bliss radiating off of her.

"Huh? What the... Why... Why are you... Wait a sec... GET MARRIED?" The only person more stunned than Rito was Haruna Sairenji, who had just fainted.

Author's note: Thank you for reading this, I will try to continue this as soon as possible. The original idea for this story comes from Drake202, so thank you to him. I will continue this along the plotline of the To LOVE-ru manga storyline, and it is a crossover with Breath of Fire 3.


	2. Chapter 2 In Which Things Go Wrong

I forgot to mention in the first chapter, I own absolutely nothing. Not to-LOVE-Ru, not the ideas of Drake202, and not Breath of Fire. If I did, I'd be considerably happier as a person overall. And I'd have a job. BUT seeing as I do not, I will continue writing as much as I can. This is a crossover of To-LOVE-Ru and Breath of Fire 3, in case there are any quesitons. Have fun reading! ~Cyrus

_Italics_- thoughts or flashbacks

**BOLDCAPS –** godspeak

_**bold italics- Ryu**_

Chapter 2 – In which things go wrong

Rito Yukki, unluckiest, or luckiest man in the universe sat daydreaming in his morning classes, fitfully going over the incident of this morning.

"_Let's get married, Rito!" Lala flung herself into his arms. Rito stood in shock as his failed confession was twisted into an event he had never considered possible. Not to mention that it happened directly in front of Haruna-chan too. _

_ "W-wait, You?" Rito looked past Lala at the very stunned Haruna. "I-It's not what it seems, Haruna-chan! She's-!" Haruna seemed to be standing unconscious, but suddenly she smiled somewhat dazedly._

_ "Congratulations..." With that she wandered off to school. _

"Wait! You've got it all wrong!" Rito shouted and shot to his feet. Panting heavily, he realized that he had (once again) made a fool out of himself in the middle of class.

Silence filled the classroom. "W-what is it?" The teacher, an old and somewhat tired man, mumbled. "What did I do wrong?" The entire class stared at Rito, who slowly, slowly sat back down. After the glow from Rito's blush had lit up the classroom, the teacher shook his head and returned to his teachings.

Rito returned to his musings, zoning out again. _ She misunderstood! I'm certain that she must have misunderstood. I have to talk to Haruna-chan later and explain everything to her. I'll do it as soon as class is over!_

When the class finally ended, Rito quickly stood and began moving towards Sairenji. Before he could get to her, however, one of her friends had started talking to her.

"C'mon Haruna, let's go to the changing room!" He could only stand back as they quickly moved off.

_Dang, bad timing. Fourth period is gym for the girls. Wait... gym... means the changing room... that means that Haruna-chan's going to be... _In nothing but her lingerie, Sairenji Haruna walked through Rito's mind before sitting down and beckoning to Rito with an outstretched finger. Shaking his head to force the undeniably attractive image out of his head, Rito once again proved his ability to light rooms with his scarlet face. _What am I thinking! I guess I'll have to face her during lunch time then... _

* * *

Meanwhile, outside of the school and approximately three hundred meters above it, one very happy Lala Deviluke celebrated her latest success with Peke. "Found it! That's the 'school' that Rito goes to!"

"Lala-sama..." Peke piped up, seeming slightly nervous.

"What is it, Peke?"

"Are you seriously considering tying the knot with that dense earthling?"

Without hesitating a second, Lala happily replied, "I am. Why?"

"Lala-sama, you are a princess of planet Deviluke, which rules over the entire milky way. And, well that is an earthling that you want to be married to..."

Lala smiled a little and bobbed her head. "Oh, leave it all to me. It'll be alright..." With a spin, she flew off towards the school below her, humming as she went. Peke remained quiet, glumly wondering what in the galaxy Lala was getting herself into.

* * *

On the other side of the city, on the roof of the tallest building, a man stood in armor that seemed to be made from bone, a black cape whipping out behind him in the wind.

"So this is Earth, huh?" His voice was deep and cultured, and the silver hair crowning his head whipped across his face. "Like the rumors said, this planet is rather on the underdeveloped side." The man was Zastin, Commander of the Deviluke Royal Guard.

"The subordinates' reports indicated that she was on this planet." He scanned the city, observing as the people below his perch went about their daily business. His fist clenched. "If there's the need to, I will make her return by force!"

* * *

Back in the classroom, the bell for break had just rung. Everyone else was enjoying their bentous, but Rito was frantically searching through his bag, trying to find his.

"...eh?" His search was fruitless. _I'm certain I put it in my bag this morning, I made sure of __it! ...But that doesn't explain where it went. Where could I have lost it... _He thought back to the events of the morning. Waking up feeling strange, freaking out about the blue hair that had appeared overnight, puzzling about how the heck his alarm clock was crushed, packing his bag, leaving, meeting Sairenji-san, and then...

"Ah! That's gotta be it! I can't think of anything else..." A spotlight illuminated Rito on the floor, despairing as the realization hit him. "It must've flown out of my bag when I tried to get her off of me..."

The classroom door shot open with a bang, revealing Saruyama. "RITO!" He stopped a moment to catch his breath. "H-Hey, what's going on dude? There's this hot chick looking for you!"

"Wh-what?"

"Yeah. And um... what are you doing on the floor?"

Rito sweatdropped. "N-nevermind that. Just show me where!" Pulling himself up with a chair, he rushed to follow his friend down the hallways.

* * *

A floor down from Rito, a newcomer was making an interesting impression of the students at Rito's school.

"What's that?" One girl asked

"Looks weird..." Another student commented.

"Cosplay?"

"Wh-whatever..."

"More importantly..."

"Isn't she gorgeous?" The males of the school population stood in awe as Lala walked down the hall, trying to find a certain someone.

"Rito-! Where are you?" Ignoring the students staring at her, Lala pressed on. "Come out Rito! Not here..."

_Fufufufu... _Peke glanced at the earthlings around the princess. _It seems Lala-sama's beauty has captivated the Earthlings one by one. Ah, but no wonder, the blood of the deceased queen of Deviluke, proclaimed the Beauty of the Universe, flows in Lala-sama's veins. _

Two of the males captivated by Lala's looks shook themselves out of their daze enough to stand in front of her. "You're pretty... From the drama club?" A lanky teen with bleached hair asked.

"W-We'll help you look for this Rito." His companion, a rather rounded boy with curly hair.

"Really?" Lala grinned happily, "well then-"

"Lala!" a panicked shout came from the staircase. "What are you doing here? Didn't I tell you to stop pulling my leg and go home!"

Lala grinned again at the familiar voice. "Rito! Found you!" She skipped over to where Rito was standing, ignoring the two males behind her. "Here! I brought this over for you~!"

"Ah..." _My lunchbox... I really did drop it. _Rito rubbed his head. "Ano.. thank-"

"H-Hey Rito, who's that girl?" Saruyama interrupted Rito mid sentence. "What's going on between you guys?"

_Aw, crap, if they find out she's an alien, then there's going to be hell to pay... _"Oh... Um... She's... um..." Lala looked at Rito, obviously puzzled by his inability to speak. To make up for his silence, she promptly grabbed Rito's arm and pulled herself to his side.

"Me? I'm Rito's bride!" Rito gasped. His gasp was echoed by the males surrounding him, expressions of horror and surprise spreading across their faces.

"Ahhh! Wh-what are you talking about?" Rito's shocked exclamation was drowned out by the communal roar of the male students.

"WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT!"

"Rito... you..." Saruyama stammered, disbelief etched on his face. "You have Haruna-chan... and yet you..."

"No! Its not like that!" Rito shouted, eyes wide. Turning to Lala, he stammered "Stop joking around!"

Lala looked down at the ground, her eyes shimmering with hurt and betrayal. "But Rito... you told me you loved me... Was that all just a lie?"

Rito couldn't believe his ears. This person, whom he had met last night, was now saying that he had confessed his love to her. Of course, this had happened, but was a complete and utter mistake. His shock was nothing compared to his schoolmates, however, and that shock was the only thing that had kept them from attacking him. Seconds later, he found himself sprinting down the hallways, followed by a mob of angry classmates.

"Catch him! Rito! We won't forgive you!" The cry of Saruyama was singled out of the crowd for just a moment. "How dare you get such a pretty girl before I do! You bastard!" The male mob raced after Rito, tears streaming down each of their faces.

Lala looked behind her as Rito desperately sprinted down the hallway, floating easily by the running boy. "Hm? Why are they angry?" she asked, confusion evident in her eyes.

"All because of you!" Rito's wail intensified as his schoolmates gained on him. _Damn it... Why did this have to happen now? Haruna-chan will never forgive me at this rate~!_

* * *

Meanwhile, in the girl's locker room, Haruna Sairenji was pondering the events of that morning. The first memory of his sudden confession. _"I... Since the first time I saw you... I've liked you!" _Rito had shouted, then been glomped by the random newcomer, who had gladly said _"Let's get married Rito!"_ Haruna looked down glumly. _Yukki-kun... that confession... wasn't for me... was it...?_

"Haruna, you haven't changed yet?" A classmate's call brought her out of her musing. "You'll miss your lunchtime!"

"Ah, sorry. You can go on ahead, I'll be there soon." She answered, waving off her friends before turning to her locker and undressing. _I wonder... who was that girl this morning...?_

* * *

Back in the section of school where Rito was, the chase was still on. Rito was sprinting through the corridors of the school, Lala happily hanging off of his neck and trailing behind him while an angry mob of male students followed behind them. Rito had managed to gain a few minutes of time ahead of them, but that was all the time he had, seeing as he had just maneuvered into a dead end.

"Geh! A dead end?" He backed into the door, staring at the pursuing mob with terror. "Lala, do something!"

She merely looked confused at Rito. "Something?"

"You have all those cool items, right!" She nodded. "Y-yeah! You have a bracelet that lets you warp, right! That... 'something... something... warp-kun'!"

Lala grinned. "Oh, you mean Pyon-pyon Warp-kun?"

"Yes, yes, that! Let's use that!"

"Okay. We can... but since I'm marrying you, I can start living in your house today, right?" Lala looked at him intensely.

Rito frowned. "Wh-what are you saying? Of course not!"

"Eh..." Lala sniffed and looked pointedly at the mob. "Then I won't use it." The mob was almost caught up to them.

_D-damn it.. she's got me cornered... I guess I just gotta surrender... _"A-ALL RIGHT! You can! Just do something! Quickly!" Lala hummed contentedly, pulling out her strange, cell phone-like device.

"It's a promise!" In a flash, Pyon-pyon Warp-kun was on her wrist and his hand was in hers. "Well then... Peke, please take care of this."

The little robot squeaked out a "Yes ma'am" before whining electronically.

"H-hurry!" Rito's panicked voice squawked. Lala smiled tenderly at him, indicating to him that everything would be just fine.

"Let's go! Warp!" Rito and Lala disappeared in a bright flash of light, leaving behind Peke and Rito's school uniform, fluttering down to the ground, empty.

The mob came to a sudden halt, blinded by the light. "...huh?" Saruyama stepped to the front, picking up one of Rito's shoes. "They... disappeared?" After searching for a few more moments, the crowd disbanded and turned back to their original activities. From the window, Peke watched as the earthlings moved away. Oh well, it was in their nature to have such a short attention span.

In someplace very dark, and very cramped, Rito and Lala tried to get their bearings.

"Ugh... Where... are we...?" Rito questioned, before receiving an elbow in his side. "Arg..."

"I don't know," Lala said, trying to follow a small source of light. "This is meant as a last resort escape, so we can't decide where to go..." A crash and a bang later, Rito found himself surrounded by light and a cloud of dust, with a very naked Lala on top of him. A row of lockers was to their left, which Rito barely noticed before letting out a girly screech and crawling backwards at high speed.

"Why the -expletives deleted- are we naked!"

"Ah! You didn't know warp-kun can only transport living matter?" Lala asked sweetly, modestly covering herself up.

"N-no way..." Rito's red face turned a worrying color of crimson as the smoke cleared, revealing a half-changed Haruna Sairenji.

"Ah... You... What were you doing inside a locker..." Haruna's face turned red as her eyes went wide as saucers. "L-looking like that?" Rito knelt on the ground, completely frozen in shock.

Lala looked carefully at Haruna before asking, "Who are you?"

Rito snapped out of his trance, shaking his head vigorously. "N-no, no, no, no, no, no! This isn't what you think it is..!" he stood, stepping towards the half-clothed girl in front of him, who was backing away in terror.

"Don... Don't come near me!" A crack of skin meeting cheek echoed thought the school. Haruna fled the room, leaving a stunned and saddened Rito behind, along with a confused, but generally happy Lala.

After they had found Peke and a uniform for Rito, Lala returned to Rito's home, while Rito himself returned to the rest of his classes. When the long day was done, and Rito had finally come home, he dragged himself up to his room, still in an unhappy daze, and the red imprint of a hand on his left cheek.

"Cheer up, Rito!" Lala called to him from the other side of the room, smiling at him and trying to get him out of his trance. "Earthling games are really fun!" Holding up a controller, she beckoned to Rito.

Rito mournfully turned her down, crawling into his bed. "You... just go home already..." He closed his eyes, and rolled over. _ This is too much for me... I've got to do something about this..._Clenching his fists, he rolled back over and stood, pointing at the door. "Lala. We need to talk."

Lala hopped to her feet, nodded, and then followed Rito outside.

* * *

Meanwhile, on the other side of town, Captain Zastin was having some trouble with the local earthlings. Facing the policeman who had pulled him to the side, he stolidly repeated, "I told you, I'm Planet Deviluke's..."

The policeman interrupted him with a sigh. "Okay, okay, I'll listen to the rest of your story at the police station." This was going to be a long night for him, he could already tell.

* * *

Outside of the Yukki residence, on the grassy slope that led down to the river, Rito sat with Lala standing next to him.

"What's wrong Rito?" Lala asked, shuffling her feet and flicking her tail around. "Why did you get serious all of a sudden and say 'Let's talk outside'?" Rito remained unresponsive, so after a few moments more of silence, Lala turned brightly to him and bent over to look at him. "Let's go back home and play some more video games."

Rito stayed silent for a few seconds, then looked at her out of the corner of his eyes. "Are you really planning on living in my house..?"

"Eh?" The question caught her by surprise. "Didn't you say it was okay for me to live there?"

The teen sweatdropped at her response. "No... Its not like I said okay..."

"Married couples live together; this is common on Earth too, isn't it?"

"Th-that's not the point! How come I have to marry you!" Rito yelled angrily. "I already told you! Everything's a misunderstanding! That confession wasn't meant for you! I really like someone else!" He grabbed his hair in anger._ Even though Haruna-chan already rejected me... ah... seriously, ever since I met Lala, everything has been going wrong... I don't care how, but I really wish she would go back to her planet... _

"You don't like me, Rito..." Lala said calmly.

"Nope! So..."

"It's okay, I can live with that!" she interjected cheerfully.

"No, that's not right!" Rito almost screamed in frustration. Peke took the opportunity to speak up.

"Lala-sama..."

"What, Peke?"

"I think I know what you are trying to do here, Lala-sama..."

"Hey! What are you saying, Peke!" Lala puffed out her cheeks in annoyance.

"Eh? Trying to do? Just what are you trying to do now!" Rito shouted at Lala, who completely ignored his question.

"Anyway, please be good to me, Rito." She happily gave him a hug, then twirled a step away. A tic mark appeared on Rito's forehead.

"Answer me!"

Rito's shout of anger was followed up by a deep and powerful voice. "Lala-sama!" Both Rito and Lala whipped around in surprise, facing a man who was clad in a full set of futuristic, bone-like armor, whose outfit was completed by a billowing black cape. Oddly enough, there was a dog attached to his leg, biting furiously at the armor covering his shin. Lala's eyes narrowed in recognition.

"Zastin!"

Rito growled. "Uwah! Another weirdo has arrived!" Zastin stood up straight, flinging the dog off of his leg.

"Fufu... I went through a lot of trouble to get here. I was arrested, a dog chased me down, and I got lost..." He cleared strands of silver hair from his face. "That's why I really dislike underdeveloped worlds... But this is it!" He pointed triumphantly at Lala. "Lala-sama, come back to Planet Deviluke with me!"

Rito stayed still in wonder at the strange newcomer. _Oh yeah, that's right. Lala's a princess who ran away from home because she didn't want to meet her future husband candidates... huh? Wait... That means... Lala's trying to..._

"Nyeeeeeh! I won't go back." Lala declared, sticking out her tongue at Zastin. "I have a reason not to!"

Zastin looked taken aback. "... What is your reason?" he crossed his arms and looked carefully at Lala, who pointed at Rito.

"I...! I fell in love with this guy here, Rito!" Rito opened his mouth in shock as the realization hit him. _Thought so...! She's using me as an excuse not to go back..._ "So I'll marry Rito and live with him on Earth!" Lala finished, glaring at Zastin, who remained silent.

Rito glanced back and forth between the two aliens. _But... well this is just too ridiculous! Whoever buys this kind of excuse is either a total idiot or incredibly gullible..._ Zastin straightened up.

"I see. So that's how it is." Rito couldn't believe his ears. _He's a gullible idiot..._ Zastin gestured at him. "I was wondering about it when I heard the report from my men. They said that an earthling tried to rescue Lala-sama..."

"Now that you know, go back and tell daddy!" Lala shouted. "I'll never go back, nor will I meet any future husband candidates!" Zastin looked critically at her, then turned his gaze to Rito.

"No." Lala gasped and took a step backward, and coincidentally also closer to Rito. "It's not that simple. I, Zastin, have received an order from the King of Deviluke to take you back. I won't be able to face the king if I go home after approving the marriage of a suspicious earthling and Lala-sama."

"Then what can we do?" Lala looked defiantly at Zastin's imposing figure. He nodded solemnly, then reached behind his back.

"Please stay back, Lala-sama." Rito noticed that Zastin's attention had shifted from Lala to him, and he was shifting into a stance with a more suitable center of gravity for fighting. The next second, Zastin was in the air above him, and swinging down with a sword that was as long as he was.

Rito stood frozen, time seeming to slow down as the blade drew nearer. There was never a time where he had wanted to move more than now, nor was there a time where he had been more unable to move. The sword came within an inch of his head, and Rito sought desperately for a way out. _Come on... come on! Move Rito! Get out of the way! This can't be true, I'm not really going to die, am I? Please, help, anyone, anything! PLEASE HELP ME! _Deep within himself, Rito felt something new, something racing through his blood, and pulsating energy that seemed to awaken another conscience, rubbing against his own.

_**Hello? I'm Ryu. Who're you?**_

_Rito. Yuuki Rito. What are you? Where are you? Where did you come from?_

_**I don't really know, the last thing I remember was being in a destroyed world, or something strange like that. Where am I?**_ The image of a young man, about the age of Rito himself, came into Rito's mind. He was about the same height, had pleasant features, and was wearing a loose vest of cloth, along with some strange and somewhat airy clothing. Strapped to his back was a sword of some sort, and his hair was arranged in messy blue spikes and a blue ponytail.

_So that's where my new hair came from... So... You're in me somewhere?_

_**Probably. I'd guess it's something that Ladon did.**_

_Ladon?_

_**The god of my world. He said something about a new world and new life for me, seeing as something seemed to have happen in my previous life. I just can't remember what though.**_

_O-okay.. Um... So, can you help me out? If you're in my body, then I think you should be able to tell that we're about to die..._

_**Oh! Why yes, we are. Um, for some reason, I think I know what to do. Do you mind if I take command for a while? **_

_You can do that? _

_**I think so. Here, just let me...**_

Rito's body twisted away from under Zastin's sword, barely escaping being cleaved in two. Zastin straightened up and stared at Rito, who was undergoing a slight transformation. His hair, previously brownish-orange, was turning blue, like the ponytail that had been there since the previous night. Ryu grinned as he settled into the new body. This was going to be interesting.

"Let me make sure," Zastin spoke in a focused tone, "Whether or not he's suitable for you, Lala-sama."

Rito, now Ryu, moved into a readier stance than it had been, and Ryu carefully noted the two meter-long gash in the ground next to him. _You gotta be kidding me..._

_**Not really. **_Ryu laughed quietly at Rito's panic. _**Um, I think I'm going to have to run from this one...**_

_If you say so... Please don't die, I'm still a virgin._

"Now for you, Rito..." Zastin pointed his sword at the earthling. "Show me your true skills in a real fight! Are you ready!"

Ryu backpedaled to a nearby van, holding his hands out in front of him. "H-hold on, wait! Why do we have to fight? How did it turn out like this!" Zastin didn't bother to answer, instead he sprinted towards Rito again.

Ryu dove under the van, rolling to come out the other side, barely dodging Zastin's flurry of strikes. Behind him, the van was sliced to pieces. Ryu jumped up and sprinted away, jumping high above a low slash thrown at him. _**This body is not as fit as I was, but I guess its pretty decent. Did you train or something? **_Ryu questioned Rito.

_Nah, I just played sports all my life. Anyway, keep running! _Ryu did so, spurring Rito's body on to speeds that should not have been humanly possible. Behind him, Zastin kept pace easily, constantly throwing attacks toward the transformed earthling. In his wake he left behind all sorts of damages, telephone poles, vending machines, signs, all slashed to pieces.

Ryu kept calm, but Rito was another matter. _I'm gonna die! I'm gonna die! I'm really gonna die!_

_** Shut up! I'm trying to prevent that! **_Ryu shouted inwards, sprinting across a street.

"What's wrong earthling! Are you just going to keep running!" Zastin roared at the fleeing figure. "I can never approve of you if all you do is run!" He sprinted to the corner of the street, and as he stepped out onto the roadway, noticed a car on a collision course with him. With a grunt, he jumped high over the car, and descended slowly, landing on the railroad tracks that ran parallel to the road. "You did a good job in setting up a trap while pretending to run around." He smirked and shifted to a two-handed grip on his sword. "But! The real battle starts now!"

Ryu stopped moving and faced Zastin. Without warning, Rito's hair faded back to its usual coloring, and Rito took full control of his body. "Hey! Be careful, it's dangerous to be on those tracks!"

_**So that's what those metal things are? Tracks? I wonder what manner of beast makes such things...**_

_It's just a train, nothing unusual. _

_**Train?**_ Rito nodded. _Yes, a train. But nevermind that, I have to get him off of those rails!_

"Dangerous?" Zastin smiled arrogantly. "Hmph. Don't get carried away. I won't be fooled by the same trick twi-!" An intercity express slammed into Zastin, interrupting his sentence and tossing him high into the air, spinning like a top. _The train came!_

_**So that is a train... **_Ryu marveled at the speed of the metallic beast, somewhat terrified of the contraption. Zastin feel out of the sky, slamming into the ground next to Rito and staying still.

_Is... Is he dead? _Rito wondered, looking with apprehension at the prone figure.

_**I don't know... **_Ryu commented.

"Guooooooh!" Zastin jumped to his feet, blood spattering off of his forehead and scaring the hell out of Rito.

"Gyaaaaah!" Rito sprinted away. "Uwah! Stay away from me! Don't come any closer!"

"You can't beat me so easily!" Zastin shouted furiously, slashing madly at Rito with his sword. Rito tripped, landing on his hands and knees. Behind him, Zastin raised both his hands above his head for a final strike. "Haaaaa!"

_Crap... this is it... _

_**Looks like it...**_

Zastin took one last step forward, then fell flat on his face. As his form hit the ground, Lala was revealed, holding out a foot in front of her. It was her who had just tripped Zastin, and she was not happy. Zastin recovered quickly, jumping to his feet.

"What are you doing Lala-sama!"

"That's not fair," Lala whined at Zastin, pouting angrily. "There's no way that Rito can defeat Zastin, who is said to be the number one swordsman on Deviluke!"

"But Lala-sama," Zastin gestured at Rito. "Marrying you, the heir of the Deviluke Royal family, means he'll rule over countless planets that are right now under King Deviluke's care! A spineless man won't be able to do it!" Rito listened from his spot on the ground, ire rising with every word. "That's why the king gathered possible candidates from all over the galaxy to meet you, Lala-sama..."

"And I told you that's exactly what I don't like!" At this point, Zastin and Lala were nose to nose, shouting into each others faces. "I'm sure Daddy cares more about the succession than me!"

Zastin made a furious motion. "No! That's not true!"

"CUT IT OUT ALREADY!" Rito bellowed, drowning out both of the Devilukeans' voices. Lala and Zastin were stunned into silence. In a much lower tone, but one that rang with anger and authority, Rito continued, "The heir of Planet Deviluke... Or meeting possible candidates... Who cares about all that..." Rito stayed still for a moment.

_It's not that I hate Lala... _

_**I know it's not. **_Rito sweatdropped.

_How, may I ask?_

_**I've been shuffling through your more recent memories. I figured I might as well get an impression of whats been going on here. **_

_I... I see... um.. A-anyway... It's not that I hate Lala... Actually, she's really cute. And it's true, I got a little excited about marrying her... _

_**Well, who wouldn't? She's beautiful. But, you already have somebody, don't you?**_

_W-well, yes. I do. That's why I've got to say this..._

"Can't a person live a normal life! A marriage isn't possible if it's with someone you don't like... So please..." Rito paused for breath. "Just go home already!" Lala seemed to be awestruck by his speech. "Give some freedom!" _To me!_ Rito panted heavily from the strain of his declaration.

Zastin was as stunned as Lala. Whether or not they knew it, the same thought was going through each of their minds. _This earthling... there is more to him than meets the eye..._

Meanwhile, the only question going through Rito's mind was: _ Did I say it too harshly? _He looked up from the ground to meet Lala's gaze. However, instead of looking like she was about to cry, a soft blush had spread across her face, and her mouth had dropped open a little.

"Rito..." her eyes shimmered as she spoke his name. Rito was nervous, he had not seen her look like this once since they had met. "I'm happy... you said you didn't like me... But you understand my feelings very well..."

_...Eh? Understand...? _Rito wondered to himself.

_** I don't know either.**_

Lala put her hand to her chest. "Like Rito said, I just want to live a life on my own. There are a lot of things that I want to do..." Zastin remained silent, looking quietly at Lala. "And I want to decide on my future husband on my own too... That's what I was thinking."

Rito shook his head. "N-no, wait-" _ I didn't mean for you to... _But it was too late, Lala had closed her eyes and missed his frantic motions.

"I used our marriage as an excuse so I wouldn't have to go back, Rito." Both Peke and Rito sighed, they had suspected as much. "But now I know..." Lala trembled slightly as she finished. "I think I really can... marry you, Rito."Rito stood silent, completely stunned. This was not what he had expected. Lala opened her eyes and smiled at Rito softly. "I mean, I want to marry you!"

Rito panicked. "Wa-wait! That's not it!" Glancing at Zastin, he begged for help. "Hey, you! Say something! Help me!" The response he got made him freeze.

"...I lost, Earthling." Zastin clenched his fist, tears leaking out of his eyes. "It was my duty to follow the King of Deviluke's orders, and thus I was oblivious as to how Lala-sama feels... Or rather, I knew, but I tried not to think about it." A shudder ran through his body. "But now that you pointed that out... I admit my loss." Zastin turned on his heel, and walked off towards the city. "I don't know if the countless husband candidates from places all over the universe will agree with it, but I will report to King Deviluke myself..." He threw a salute over his shoulder at Rito. "That we can entrust Lala-sama to you! You, who can truly understand Lala-sama's feelings...!" With that, he pulled out a small device, and in a flash of light, he was gone.

Lala, who had paid no attention at all to Zastin's speech, had happily pulled herself into a hug with Rito, and was currently rubbing her cheeks against his chest, much like a cat would. Oddly enough, she was making small purring noises and her tail was flicking back and forth playfully. Rito simply stood still in shock.

After a few minutes of nuzzling, Lala let go of Rito and stepped back. "I'm so glad I can marry you, especially considering it looks like a two-for-one deal! I think you might have another entity in you, but I'm sure you can handle it!"

Rito couldn't believe his ears. _**It's true, you know. I'm amazed at how calmly you've taken to having an entirely different person inside of you. I'm quite impressed, Rito. I think we'll make a good team!**_

"Wh... Wh... Wh-what the..." Rito stammered. "Alternate being? Two-for-one deal?" Finally, after everything had completely registered in his brain, Rito let out the shriek that had been building all day.

"?"

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Thanks for reading! I hope to be somewhat regular in producing chapters from now on, possibly one every month or so. Any suggestions or reviews are very welcome!


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